Project Wonderful Banner

Thursday, April 24, 2008

That damned metaphor

The CFL is an almost perfect metaphor for Barack Obama, I agree...imperfect, but better than most of the alternatives and representing a step in the right direction.

Mallard's criticism of the CFL is also pathetically metaphoric of his own criticism of Obama. It takes items out of context to score cheap points: While what he says is true, more mercury is produced by burning coal to create electricity for non-CFLs than by broken CFLs. And it ignores key facts: the next generation of CFLs are already becoming available and lower the amount of mercury.

His claim that the media treat Obama better than the other candidates is ill-timed at best and a bald-faced lie at worst.

Also: writing a lengthy screed and drawing a CFL, three times, cannot possibly count as professional cartooning.

1) That looks more like a pile of folded laundry than a compact fluorescent bulb.2) Mallard's "statistic" is from the Business & Media Institute, a right-wing organization dedicated to "analyzing and exposing the anti-free enterprise culture of the media."3) There's also mercury in regular fluorescent bulbs - the kind that are in the stores, offices, schools, etc. that we all trod around in during the day. It's also in dental fillings, thermometers, older electronics, etc. But of course it only becomes a problem for Bruce when it comes from a hated "green" item.4) Kind of funny/ironic that Bruce and a group dedicated to "free enterprise" would suddenly be up in arms about poisonous chemicals in a product considering how often their ilk defends any attempt at reining in the toxins in the environment as an unfair burden on industry. And it's always hilarious watching some free-market dogmatist backtrack when the market begins to fill with something that offends his moral fiber.5) That said, I've had poor luck with CFLs, not the least of which is all the ones I've looked at or bought say "do not use in enclosed fixtures" which, of course, are most of what I have in my apartment. Hopefully some of that has changed or will change in the near future.

I think it's sad that Tinsley looked at this, and was satisfied with it as a finished product. I mean, think about it. This idea didn't just appear on paper; he probably developed the concept, tweaked the text, all the stuff you do when you layout a cartoon ... and this is his finished product. He looked at this and said "yes, this is done." Presumably, he thought it was funny... that might be the saddest thing of all.

Dave Robidenza done beat me to the punch about Tinny's sudden and dubious concern for the environment. That's very dirty smelly hippy of Tinny. (Excellent informative post by Exanonymous, too.)

Holy God, that is some pathetic drawing--but at least it is consistent; Tinny's caricatures of light bulbs are just as wildly inaccurate as his drawings of humans, dogs, pencils, and so on. As it stands, he can draw only coked-up zombies well, and that's unintentional.

Friday's MF: Tinny has Mallard whip out his limp stick--erm, pencil--to write an answer and then compose a question to fit the answer.

Dig it: Tinny/Mallard is playing "Jeopardy" with himself. (You can also rephrase that into a masturbation joke if you like.)

Another unintentional self-revelation on Tinny's part, suggesting one method by which he manages to maintain his willful ignorance in the face of unrelenting reality.

(He's probably mad at himself for not being able to squeeze "dog-eating" in there somewhere. Of course, even Tinny wouldn't bring "torturing political prisoners" up again at this point...or would he? Stay tuned!)